AGT FOOD & INGREDIENTS INC., $36.75, symbol AGT on Toronto, buys and processes a range of pulses—peas, beans, lentils and chickpeas—as well as other specialty crops. The Saskatchewan-based company owns processing plants in Canada, the U.S., Turkey, Australia, China and South Africa. Roquette Frere SA, a major French agricultural-products firm, has announced that it plans to build the world’s largest pea protein plant in Manitoba. The family-owned company aims to take advantage of Manitoba’s access to competitively priced hydroelectric power and transportation links. The $400 million plant will consume the equivalent of nearly all of Manitoba’s current pea production. However, Roquette believes that the province’s farmers will increase production to meet demand. From its base in Saskatchewan, AGT is a major pea processor, but doesn’t source any of its peas from Manitoba. It won’t be a direct competitor to Roquette. But the French company’s plans do illustrate the growing demand for vegetable protein for food and pharmaceutical products. Pea protein, extracted…